My new computer arrives in a few days. I'm excited. I've probably refreshed the tracking order a billion times. I wish someone could strap a fucking rocket to the UPS truck, Monday couldn't come sooner.  
 
In the mean time I've been struggling, just a bit, in terms of trying to find stuff to play.
 
There's only so much Brutal Legend achievement grinding I can take. :/
 
Anyway, I've decided to take this opportunity to do something a little more creative for this blog post. Something other than the traditional introspective academic ventures of whatever the fuck is on my mind.
 
A few years ago, I decided to venture into videogame soundtrack collecting. My collection, is modest at best. Primarily because of the steep import fee's. Regardless it's felt really awesome to finally have physical copies of game soundtracks versus obtaining them by other means. So I thought today, instead of doing the traditional Brain Dump I would attempt at writing a soundtrack review. I picked Valkyria Chronicles to be the subject of either my first...or last(?)...review after subjecting it to a series of tests. 
(Okay, I lied: I closed my eyes and grabbed the first soundtrack off my shelf.)
 
I didn't want to do a "traditional review", because I like to ramble. So I gave it some more thought, and sat alone trying to find a good name for whatever written experiment this was going to turn into. It was a really interesting, and dare I say, a spiritual process. Days of meditation juxtaposed on days of deep and intricate debate....with myself....outloud... 
 
...
 
Yesterday, I finally stumbled upon the name of this written experiment. I am quite happy with it.

Intro

 
I think my history regarding listening to Hitoshi Sakimoto's work, like a lot of people, began with the release of Final Fantasy Tactics years ago. He did a phenomenal job back then, and his role of stepping into the series that Nobuo Uematsu is most known for, would be something he would do again. Final Fantasy XII was the first real entry in the series to be completely devoid of Uematsu in the soundtrack, and in this void Sakimoto walked in. 
 
I never felt he got a fare shake regarding his work on Final Fantasy XII. 
 
Like the game itself, the soundtrack was up to quite a bit of scrutiny from fans. I felt bad. I felt anyone walking into that job was subject to the range of over-the-top scrutiny. Everyone has an opinion how a Final Fantasy soundtrack should sound like, and to jump into a game like Final Fantasy XII that was simply all over the place in terms of fan acceptance...Ugh, I kinda feel bad just thinking about it. 
 
Especially, when I personally think it was quite the competent soundtrack. Not excellent, nor his best, but quite listenable. A few themes really struck out to me, specifically the main theme. Certain themes were used quite liberally in the soundtrack. You either interperate that as being lazy, or interperate as simply being confidant with your composition. Just because you use it a bunch, doesn't translate into: you've run out of ideas. Which is something that the soundtrack of Valkyria Chronicles proves. 
 

Packaging

 
Valkyria Chronicles (Senjou no Valkyria Original) comes in a traditional plastic CD jewel case. It's two disks, with the traditional CD paper flap on it's side. 
 


It's nothing to write home about. I like the front picture with Welkin and Alicia. The back (not pictured for some stupid reason.) Has the track listing and another neat pose of Welkin and Alicia. 
 
I should take the time to point out my pictures are taken from a cell-phone, and thus retain the "quality" you would imagine. My apologies.
 
It's when you open it up where the fun starts.
 








 
 
 
 
The booklet inside, (The picture of the silver haired Selvaria is the back of it.) contains some neat art from the game. The art is fantastic, although there doesn't seem to be any exclusive artwork in the booklet. But my main point of interest is the really neat art on the first disk, which is quite in congress with the actual game itself (Watercolor sketch). I don't know why, I really like looking at it. 
 
Everyone knows the fictional land of Europa where Valkyria Chronicles takes place is based off of Europe. I wasn't aware of the geographical comparison you could make. You saw quick glimpses of a map in the game, but now we can sit back and get a really good look at it. Crap, look at that third picture. I don't know whether to laugh, or like it in a nerdy way. Perhaps both? 
 
I wish there was more attention to it's packaging. It's good stuff, but I've seen better. Especially with a visually stunning game like Valkyria Chronicles, I would have liked to seem some sketches or something exclusive in there. That's probably why I like the CD artwork so much.
 
Notice for non-English speakers: You will have to download an English tracklisting online.
 

The Music

 
If you listen to some of his early work, you can tell Sakimoto has developed over time his own style of music. To put it simply: I think Valkyria Chronicles is some of his best, and most focused work to date. 
 
The first piece of music I want to focus on is the main theme. It's in a word: Amazing. 
 
 
 
The piece of music does a great job at embodying what Valkyria Chronicles at it's core is. A fictional anime take on World War 2. The first thing I thought when I heard the music was how bit's and pieces felt...western... When we think of war movies, specifically war movies that take place in World War 2, our mind usually thinks of liberal uses of drums and horns. The main theme not only has both, but uses them in ways you would expect them to be used, it sounds military. At the same time, there is most certainly a sense of fantasy to be had heard here, overtly epic like a traditional JRPG theme. It works on multiple levels, and does exactly what it sets out to do: Sell you a fantasy World War 2 game.
 
It's also used all over the soundtrack. I never felt though that the repeating tracks were repeating. Empty Loneliness is the main theme in piano form, but it does it's job as an emotional theme for certain characters in the story. It sounds like it's own thing.
 
Sakimoto cheats a bit with the final boss theme. Like Final Fantasy XII, the final boss theme is essentially yet again, a variation of the main them. Unlike Final Fantasy XII, the final boss them is done with a full blown orchestra.
 
It fucking rocks. 
   
The interesting thing about Valkyria Chronicles as a game for a composer, is it's emphasis of focusing the entire weight of your mechanics into the game's battles. In other words: You better have some catchy tunes to listen too when your playing out a three minute turn. Each opposing faction has their own piece of music to accompany there turn in gameplay. It's here where your opinion of Valkyria Chronicles might override the soundtrack. Why is fighting to the death accompanied by such a soft and catchy tune? Because it accompanies the game's presentation, and dare I say mechanics. When I'm looking at a map, planning my moves, I don't want to listen to something depressing or too dramatic. That's what the enemies themes are for. :P
 
Desperate Fight is a great track, but my favorite battle theme will probably be Street Fighting. The theme really makes you feel like your making an epic advance upon the enemy. 
 
 Valkyria's Awakening is another of the few orchestrated tracks, it really captures the sheer power of what the Valkyria can do.  
 
The story based music, and the character themes are excellent. Thematic and strong, the bulk of the music is simply excellent. It has the quality of a great JRPG soundtrack: It's great to hear such a varied score, and yet have a great sense of unity among most of the tracks.   
Chronicles of the Gallian War is probably the most memorable to fans of the game, and quite possibly my favorite track of the entire soundtrack.

The vocal stuff is...eh.
The soundtrack begins, and ends with your obligatory JPop theme, No Matter the Distance. I personally didn't care for it, and it seems...out of place with the rest of the music. You hear an instrumental version of Succeeded Wish when you start up the game, the actual song has lyrics. It's not bad, but I would have liked a track I was familiar with. Again personal taste.
 

Final Thoughts.

This was fun for me to write.
 
It's an excellent soundtrack. Aside from some few, very minor blemishes you might not even consider, Valkyria Chronicles was quite possibly my favorite soundtrack of last year. If you have the extra money and are a fan of the series, I wholeheartedly recommend a purchase. It's quite listenable outside of playing the game which is rather neat too.
 

Score: 9.9832984732

I don't do review scores.

*WARNING* THE FOLLOWING THREAD HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH MODERN WARFARE 2 *WARNING*

*WARNING* THE FOLLOWING THREAD HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH MODERN WARFARE 2 *WARNING*

    
There will be no mention of Modern Warfare 2 in this thread. None. Really. I'm serious. My middle name is serious. Okay, so that was a lie. Wouldn't it be cool if my middle name was serious? 
Vidiot Serious Westriverside Warehouserock XXVII 
 
My last name is a bit long.
 

When Windows 95 was launched, the ad campaign back then was absurd. So when I see stuff, like the hype concerning Modern Warfare...err..Halo 3, I'm reminded of the giant Windows 95 tent that was assembled outside the CompUSA over at Totem Lake. It was epic. Jesus came back for the release of Windows 95.   
 
It's fun to think back, because as I get older I begin to see cycles in gaming history. This all came to head a few days ago, while I was doing my daily web surfing and daily surf boarding, when I ran across an article exclaiming "The Death of Single Player!" I've read this before. In fact, I think I've run across similar articles multiple times during over a decade, easily. Yet, single player has yet to die. Why is that? The first time I read that Single Player was on it's death bed was during the era of Counter Strike clones, and again a few years ago when WOW practically took over PC Gaming. The cycle is not exclusive to hypothetical concerns over single player dieing, but other stuff like videogame violence. Watching the events concerning the airport scene in Modern War....err... GTA, made me remember the fun flurry that we had during the early days of Mortal Kombat.   
 
Recently I've come to a conclusion that was very dear to me. If there has been one great one great consistent reoccurring article, or subject that has been brought up time, and time again on internet forums and even gaming media, it's that adventure games are dead. DEAD I TELL YOU. Gaming took the adventure genre outside to your backyard, did terrible things to it, killed it, then proceeded to do even more terrible things to it after it was dead. Are you picturing what I am describing?! You know that scene in Final Destination 2, with that guy, and the part where he was ripped apart by barb wire? THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED TO ADVENTURE GAMING. Thanks to twitch games like Modern...Halo..

Or did it. Because I'm playing a lot of adventure games right now, and it's not one of my classic gaming runs. Was it that simple, that the genre simply croaked and died? To answer these questions thoughtfully, I think we need to go back to basics and try to explain what adventure gaming is. More particular, why we call it an adventure. These are terms we usually don't think about. What is an action adventure? Why is 'adventure' even added to that term?
 

Game Splicing, and Game Mechanic Evolution

 
We tend to think that the combination of genres is a relatively new concept, but in reality that's not necessarily true. Game Splicing has been around for quite some time now. One early, more dramatic example could be ActRaiser. 
 
It's the concept of meshing genres together with the result of creating something new. Our first person shooters have RPG mechanics, our 3rd person action games have RTS elements, and back during the mid 90's our platform games started to get genuine puzzles. 
Yes, you moved blocks, it was basic and almost barbaric but the shift in 3D technology limited our gaze. As technology and design marched forward, what worked in a 2D environment began to get lost in the fray of 3D. It's gotten considerably better overtime.
 
 
 
Recently near the end of Uncharted 2, Nathan Drake has to utilize his journal to decipher an elaborate puzzle the concerns checking old scriptures and diagrams. The scene is expertly done, and if it was taken out of context, one could argue that Uncharted for that brief moment was an adventure game.
 
We take Game Splicing for granted now. We consider it as almost an evolution in game mechanics. These concepts, mechanics, can come from the same genre from different games. Game A has a cover mechanic that Game B then borrows, but it's the genre to genre combination that can be the most rewarding and the most unforgiving if incorrectly executed. Brutal Legend suffers from an identy crisis, a jack of all trades master of none trying to cram open world/Zelda/and an RTS in one game. While others like System Shock combine the finesse of RPG character creation, with horror and twitch shooting. (Thematic qualities "horror" can be apart of Game Splicing, but this is more relatable to Gameplay Mechanic Adaptation, versus mechanic functionality which we are talking about here.)
 
What's interesting that while we try haphazardly to combine the newest genre's with each other, we have totally lost sight, that we have continually succeeded in the greatest Genre Game Splicing of all time: Adventure games.
 

Defining Adventure

 
I don't think we have collectively classified adventure games correctly. 
 
When someone brings up the term "adventure game", we immediately think of games like Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, Grim Fandango, and just about anything Lucas Arts was doing, before they learned that Star Wars was a profitable gaming business venture. I think another word needs to be added to the definition: Puzzle. 
 
Puzzle Adventure Game, doesn't roll off the tongue as just Adventure Game, but it's probably the most accurate description of the genre your going to get. Who decided that a puzzle gameplay was synonymous to adventure? The term adventure is bold, giant term encompassing the likes of story and exploration. Story and exploration, specifically the exploration of a foreign world or environment you are not accustomed too. These concepts are basic, but you can see them extensively if you go back to adventure gaming's roots. 
 
There are two games to consider. One called Adventure...and another...called....Adventure. *ahem* Let me break it down.
 

Vidiot breaks it down. Hurts himself.

 
Adventure (aka Colossal Cave, 1975-1977) 
 
 
 
Argued to be the first text adventure ever, "Adventure" wasn't keen on elaborate item oriented puzzles, but exploration. You explored a giant cave, like most text adventures that would later followed (I have to mention Zork here, or I will be attacked by angry nerds.) Adventure would be described today as "Interactive Fiction" versus what we might regard as a game. It established the concept of exploration, which would later be expanded on in what is argued to be the first action adventure game...
 
Adventure (1979) 
 
 
Probably the most common known, the 2600 game Adventure was also the first game to have an easter egg. Players explored a large environment (mazes) there was of course, no narrative or fiction to accompany the exploration. It was a form of splicing (and very basic mechanic adaptation.), combining twitch gameplay with exploration albeit very primitive exploration. The technology was not yet, on equal footing as the same intricate representation of text. This would change over time, as Text Adventures would eventually die...but their mechanics would be better represented thanks to the evolution of technology.
 

So, adventure games are dead?

 
No. The mechanics of adventure games have been spliced into almost all genres. We should try to refer to adventure games, of the point and click variety, to puzzle adventure games. This is due to their mechanics of solving puzzles in combination to environmental exploration and a strong focus on narrative. It's why we originally, and accurately, called Metroid: Prime a First Person Adventure game versus a First Person Shooter.
 
The puzzle adventure game went out of style and popularity, but it didn't die like it's text adventure ancestor. It wasn't swept up by the progress of technology, which usually results in the closest thing we can call a "true" death to a genre. There is still a viable market. TellTale knows this, as well as the intelligent minds behind Machinarium. A few years prior games like The Longest Journey and Syberia attracted critic's eyes for good reason. They can still tell a more cohesive plot than most twitch shooters like...er.................Halo... You can of course jump off from this ledge I've drawn you to into a myriad of debates and conversation, such as if there are adventure elements in roleplaying games, which would make sense as the very essence of a tabletop RPG is interactive fiction.
 
Regardless, the future for the Adventure game is a bright one. Seeing stuff like the revival of Monkey Island and Sam and Max were almost ludicrous concepts only a few years back, I predict the final chapter in this genre is not going to be written for a very long time. 
 
 
I wore my friends Prestige Modern Warfare 2 night-vision goggles and scared everyone at a local Taco Bell. Old people are funny to scare. I think I'm evil. :D
 
Oh, and this is awesome.

A new blog post is coming, but until then let's have a moment of silence concerning the reviews for the film 2012. 
 
...
 
  

...Alright, that's more than enough. 
 
From the people who gave us Stargate, Independence Day, that American Godzilla movie, that other natural disaster movie with global warming killing us, and that other disaster movie with people dressed up as the Flinstones, comes 2012. 
 
This movie, alongside another bad alien abduction movie has been bombarding me (and perhaps you?) ad-nauseum. 
The great thing about 2012 is how one could make a judgment of the film from the first teaser. 
 
Some say Hollywood clearly has run out of ideas regarding their big budget productions.
Some should win some type of "Captin Obvious" award.
 
There are problems with RottenTomaotes for sure, but I will always have fun simply reading the quotes for the reviews.
 
 

I don't think that, other than Zombieland and The Hangover, I've laughed this hard all year, although I'm sure the comedy in 2012 is 90% unintentional.

Actors say silly lines with deadly seriousness. Exposition is wielded like a sledgehammer. All you can do is grit your teeth and wait for the next wave of destruction. 

Emmerich, Bay and their brethren need to learn how boring these CGI onslaughts have become. When we see 18 skyscrapers collapse and several dozen vehicles wreck at the same moment, what do we focus on? 

The defining entrant in, and the nadir of, the disaster porn genre.

A state-of-the-art multiplex three-ring circus whose special effects stagger the senses and play like a video game, whose human drama aims for the cosmic and lands waist-deep in the Big Silly. 

Too long by an hour and populated with nothing but stereotypes, we ultimately want the world to come to an end, if only so we can get up and go to the bathroom. 

Emmerich wasn't content to merely make the biggest disaster movie ever: he had to make every disaster movie ever... [I]t's like something Ed Wood would have made if he had a budget... 

Roger Ebert sums it up best in his positive review. 

This is fun. 2012 delivers what it promises, and since no sentient being will buy a ticket expecting anything else, it will be, for its audiences, one of the most satisfactory films of the year.

 

Yeah. I'll pass.
 

 

 

 

 

It was one of my most popular blog posts. 
 
With over 60 replies "To the management of Lincoln Square Cinemas" was a truly epic feat. At least 1/3rd of my friends/"followers" came from that thread, and just right now: I decided to delete the whole thing. I copied the entire thread onto my computer, if any of you are interested in seeing what all the drama was about, just ask and I'll be glad to send it to you.
 
I've been contemplating deleting the blog post for a while now, in fact I've been contemplating going back and deleting a few of my early blogs. Out of that controlled anarchy was the catalyst and inspiration to start typing the "Brain Dumps". 
 
It all started when me and a friend decided to hit the movie theater. Another guy, who I will ironically for the sake of this post name Reggie (PM me if you want to know why that's ironic.) decided to tag along with us. He was new to the area having just moved from Florida, and is currently going to University of Washington. In typical Bellevue fashion we were stooped from seeing the movie, "District 9", because he did not have appropriate ID for this state he was not allowed into the theater. My friend drove Reggie back to his house, grabbed his ID, and drove back to the theater just to watch two attractive women be let into the theater without ID. (We are all clearly in our mid-twenties.)
 
My friend, a self described "comedian/crazy person", and "Super English major", decided to type what I believe was the most epic complaint letter I had ever seen. Greek mythology reference and all, it was clearly a no-holds barred attempt in satire, which purpose was to clearly get the attention of whoever read it. That was it. I was a realist concerning the context and I was entirely skeptical of it accomplishing anything, my purpose of sharing it was simply to share something funny. I was upset with what had happened, but I was more joking about the letter which was the crux of my entire post. 
 
There were a couple things I was not prepared for when I typed it.
The first one was that the blog for a while was the second, to the third thing that appeared on Google after a search for "Lincoln Square Cinemas". From my understanding, real people were actually fired initially at the theater. Was not expecting that to happen.
 
At this point I would like to say I have nothing but good things to now say from the cinema in question. Because of my post they contacted my friend directly. My friend was at first, understandably still frustrated with them, began looking at their responses at a skeptical nature. I reminded him that it was a great thing that the cinema responded, let alone responded with such understanding. From the emails that I read, the people in charge their seem to be pretty damn intelligent and awesome. Satire had won. 
 
But, satire is difficult to translate over the internet. At least that's what I learned. 
One member in particular found umbrage over the post in general. I had absolutely no mind with people disagreeing, but when I used his comment to expand and give more context to the situation, he pounced with a correct theory that keeping courteous from a customer to worker relation was something to pursue. As someone who works retail, I agree. What I didn't agree with was his tone, a consistent stream of simply negative attitude. I didn't understand why someone with a good argument would continue to voice it in the manner of an internet troll. His reasoning, or excuse, as he continued to reply over and over again ad-nauseum, was that it was the same thing that my friend and I engaged with the cinemas. Of course, one could immediately counter that none of the context matched up at all. That the original post was clearly satirical, there was anger but nothing over-the-top aggressive that he in particular portrayed. That he was not providing me a service at all, and that the letter in question never devolved into making a statement like, and I quote: "Fuck all English Majors".
 
It got progressively worse when my friend chimed in. He absolutely enjoyed collapsing his arguments on him with great technicality. It got even worse when other members started to take umbrage with what the troll said. I got a lot of PM's at this time. All supportive, all ragging on the troll. 
But for me: Nothing fun, or interesting was being produced now. 
 
I didn't like it.
 
Eventually it just became a shouting match, any form of argument dissipated. and the troll frustrated just began cursing. Any glimmer of interesting debate evaporated. I ended the discussion between both.  I wanted to blog, but I didn't want people remembering me for inadvertently creating such an aggravating troll topic. Granted, I also didn't want a bunch of people "following" me because I was that guy who told off the movie theater, and told that one guy off who trolled on a blog for over a week.
 
At the time I had just finished going to a trip where I played FFVII on my PSP. I thought it would be interesting for me just to type what was directly on my mind on a given subject. I would do one, and see what would come from it. Several Brain Dumps latter, I can say I am glad with what has transpired. I'm thinking of expanding a bit. I'm curious to know if anyone would be interested in my giving my thoughts on certain videogames soundtracks I own. Yes, I collect and own actual physical game soundtracks.
 
I DO NOT shy away from debate.
Recently I threw in my two cents regarding Infinity Ward's airport shootout. I think it's tasteless, and is there only to attract controversy and compete with other controversial games. That the game has an identity crisis if it's trying to appeal to raw real emotions of a terrible situation that gripes our world, and at the same time be something akin to a Michael Bay movie with America being invaded. I love Modern Warfare, and I appreciate what IW has done for gaming, and I'm probably going to eventually pick up MW2. 
But that doesn't mean I cant personally find fault with things they do.
The debate was for the most part civil and interesting. Disagreements were abound, but aside from one post it never spiraled into name calling. The Giantbomb community is still the best of the best, and my moment of annoyance is not an accurate reflection of the community. 
 
So, cheers. Here's looking for the future.
 

My first positive experience with the community came from a user named  and333.
 
I didn't ask him to make my user avatar, he just did and sent me his version of what I tried to hobble together with a computer devoid of Photoshop at the time. It's interesting stuff like that's kept me here. The last time I was took part of a gaming community was years ago, when I was probably too young to take part. The site in particular actually died, and the community tried to keep together after the sites demise. I'm not exactly sure why I left, I can't really remember. Regardless, I've realized that I missed reading opinions from cool people who know have an understanding of what they are talking about, versus the traditional: "OMGZ y0u sux0r f0r l1king thiz gam3!" which still exists here, but not as apparent as some other sites. There are some awesome writers here, and the fact that this is a site that supports and is focused about user writing, the quality usually for the most part is great.
 
And it has hands down, the best achievement implementation for a web site on the planet.
 
So, consider this a shutout to all the awesome people I know. You know who you are. If not ask, and I will respond, usually by making fun of you.
Because you are a terrible, terrible person.   
 
Let's talk about Sonic.

His name is Sonic, bitch.

 
I was into Sonic as a kid.
Some of my earlier memories was watching both Sonic TV shows that played during the early 90's. It was incentive for me to wake up as a kid and watch an episode before heading out to class. Sonic AM was the best of the two shows, I was incredibly happy that the Nostalgic Critic reviewed the show a while back and showed how excellent it was. (At the same time showing how bat-shit terrible the other show was.) Heck, I'll admit I even read the comics here. There I did it.
 
Sonic was a product of the 90's for sure. His arrogant coolness was akin to what was considered "cool" attitudes at the time. Versus Mario, Sonic actually had personality. He wasn't a blank slate.
 
Watching Sonic age has been, understandably, annoying.
I've heard, and read various reasons over why Sonic has failed. A popular theory is that Sonic is, and has always been for, children. That we have out grown him.
 
So, why do I enjoy Mario: Galaxy?  What makes that game almost timeless in regards to the demographics that enjoy that game?
 
I don't think at this point, Sonic will ever step out of Mario's shadow. For better or worse, the two mascots will be always compared. Sonic's brand recognition alone has allowed him to continue to have games. If you honestly think that Sonic has continued to pump out new games due to their quality, buddy, I got bad news for you.
 
The problem not just resides as Sonic as a character, but who and what Sonic is from a gameplay mechanic standpoint.
 
Let's talk reinvention, but first let's establish my theory.
 

Gameplay mechanic adaptation.

 
It's pretty simple. You might be well aware of it, let's start with Mario 64.
 
An example of gameplay mechanic adaptation deals with Mario himself. Mario had always been about agility, jumping specifically. This was a thematic quality attached to the character. Jumping. When Mario went into the the 3rd dimension he just didn't double jump now. He did back-flips, and he sprang off the tops of trees. Some games didn't need adaptation, but many did but got confused. They either tried to mimic other games, loosing their identity in the process.
 
Taking thematic elements from a character, elements that have been established from a mechanical standpoint, and expanding them, reinterpreting them.
 
Reinterpretation of themes can aid stale gameplay also. Tomb Raider went through a metamorphosis when it switched over to Crystal Dynamics. Crystal took the concepts of Lara's platforming and expanded on them, by literally making her gameplay accommodate the aspect she is a quite literally a gymnastics.
 


We can establish these thematic qualities too! Batman Arkham Asylum made you feel like Batman. How? By making you do what Batman does from a mechanical aspect.
In the end, Sonic needs this an application of this theory. Fresh eyes to look at what Sonic is. Someone other than Sonic Team.
 
Let's apply the theory.

We all know Sonic runs, and that the game should be accommodating to this concept. Not making Sonic into a...slow moving...large....stretchy arm monster... Or...swinging a sword...
So what's my concept of a reenvisioned Sonic game? Well, for me, it all boils down with this picture that was released with the announcement of the ill-fated Sonic game from 2006. Specifically, this concept image:
 


Do you see what I see? It's not Sonic. It's not just the speed. It's his environment.
 
Sonic runs, he needs the landscape to run in. The freedom, to race around at top speeds. Sure, yes, he still needs the obligatory roller-coaster experience you had during the day time levels in Unleashed...But look at that screenshot, do you not see the potential that I see? The concept of an open-world design is an idea I would love to see a new Sonic take part in.
 
I started thinking about this after I saw this clip of the canceled Flash game that was leaked by the dev team.
 
 
Again, keep thinking about the concept of an open-world. I can't be the only one who see's potential here.
 

Personality issues

I thought Bioware did a good job trying to address what passes as plot in a Sonic game. The franchise needs grounding, and focus. We all know Sonic also needs to shed a heft majority of the random critter friends who follow him. Instead of focusing on his uninteresting friends, why don't we focus on Sonic's world and situation, a concept that barely gets any screen time. I would also argue that Sonic, himself needs to grow up with the times, but that's just my opinion, as is this entire post.
 
The reinvention of Sonic is a touchy subject. Everyone knows at this point that something should happen. Sonic Team's idea is to release an HD version of Sonic on XBLA to appease long term fans. This is procrastination, not addressing the issue that they're current featured games are not up to snuff and standards, not by Mario anymore, but our standards of good games in general. There are fans that wish the game would only stay in a 2D form. I don't blame you if you feel this way. The consistent stream of, lack of a better word: failure, is something I haven't seen since Army Men.
 

In conclusion

It's fun to apply the theory to other genres and franchises. Regardless, I think this is a pretty appropriate 1,000 post. I've always enjoyed the concept of Sonic more than Mario, I see a lot of potential wasting away here.
 
(Vidiot's favorite Sonic game is Sonic CD.)