My thoughts of SRB2.

[Streakster Typhoon]

Pros

SRB2's enviorment is well-built and feels like a refreshed moment from Sonic 2's environment

The feel of it is a little shaky but manageable.

The stage's may take you more then 5 minutes to complete so your hand won't be held all the way through like a baby like most of the newer games.
And you may have to think for a second "Hmm what shall I do?" Instead of jumping and boosting your entire way through.

The jumping physique is great!

The Roll-Out technique is beautifully displayed.

Cons
This running physique is bad, why is there no way for you to go over your top speed without having to use Super Sneakers?

The Spin Dash physique is poor but manageable again, it doesn't help you reach your max speed and it doesn't give that much of a boost.

The level build with speed is poor also, now I know there are times you shouldn't just haste but the level's build should also help you go over your max running speed with the help of the Spindash technique.

Overall Score: 8/10

Additional Comments:
Yes, you can go over the max running speed but usually it'd have to be from a scripted tube or perhaps a scripted launcher of some sort. But you should be able to easily go over the max running speed without all the scripted stuff. Which brings into play, I've noticed that there are stairs rather then slopes? Slopes are essential to perfect the feel of the classic games. Slopes and Hills were the things that made Sonic him speedy self then, without those there's just no way to feel the true speed and agility etc. that the genesis brought us.

 

[MascaraSnake]

To put it bluntly: SRB2 is not about speed and momentum. You could even go as far as to argue that it plays more like a Mario game than a Sonic game, although that's a stretch. The max running speed is the maximum speed in SRB2 (except if you're falling where it doesn't matter or if you have Speed Shoes). This is not a fault with the running or spindashing physics, it's just that there would be no real point in ever going over the top speed and also no natural way to do so.

The reason for this is that the engine doesn't have slope support, and any attempt to implement them has failed because the engine is too restrictive. Look at SRB2 Community Build in the Releases section for an incomplete attempt.

 

[Unknownlight]

I thought it had more to do with the fact that a lot of computers have terrible OpenGL support, not that slope physics have never been properly implemented.

 

[Sonnarkku]

The max running speed is the maximum speed in SRB2 (except if you're falling where it doesn't matter or if you have Speed Shoes).

...Or Thokking. Anyways, yes, SRB2's far more platforming than speed, the new levels were even more about platforming so yeah...

Either way it's still THE most complete Sonic Fangame out there.

 

[Monster Iestyn]

Either way it's still THE most complete Sonic Fangame out there.

...you mean even SRB2's prequel, SRB1, was never near as complete as SRB2 is?

 

[ThunderNova]

How about "SRB2 is the best looking, most original, most near to complete Sonic fangame out there"?

 

[Boinciel]

I thought it had more to do with the fact that a lot of computers have terrible OpenGL support, not that slope physics have never been properly implemented.

No, it's more the fact that OpenGL is an imperfect attempt at trying to recreate Software mode. Software mode looks dated yet nostalgic (and the coders like working with it better), whereas OpenGL makes SRB2 feel like it could be something more. With Software mode, SRB2 feels like a big fish in a small pond.

That's the thing about SRB2. We're not trying to be the most modern game around, we're taking what we have and molding it into the spirit of pre-1996 SEGA. The physics, while adapted to a 3D environment (and a few numbers modified in the process), have a similar feeling of control tightness and instant response that the Genesis games had.

 

[Streakster Typhoon]

...Or Thokking. Anyways, yes, SRB2's far more platforming than speed, the new levels were even more about platforming so yeah...

Either way it's still THE most complete Sonic Fangame out there.

I was going to say thokking but I found it useless to say, anyways I'm going to have to disagree with the most "complete" thing, but it is definitely one of the most unique. Just at times it doesn't feel like a Sonic game, but that's on a rare occasion and like SpiritCrusher said it would somewhat point more to a Mario game 'cept with Spindashing. All in all the engine won't allow it and I can see you're going to stick to the customary way of the engine so we do have fan modifications to fix some of the problems. Although I still do question, the DOOM engine? It's not a big deal but that's not one of the best choices I'd use for a Sonic fan game engine but that's a personal note.
SRB2 is definitely original but I wouldn't say it's completely the best. Although it's much better then most fan games now, most fan games are 2D homages to Sonic 1 - Sonic 3 & Knuckles and they all start getting old after a while, but SRB2 is definitely one of the most best at platforming, such as the Blitz Sonic engines. I'd go into detail but I believe that's "advertising".

 

[MascaraSnake]

Although I still do question, the DOOM engine? It's not a big deal but that's not one of the best choices I'd use for a Sonic fan game engine but that's a personal note.

If the devs were to start the game from scratch, they sure wouldn't use the Doom engine. It would be a terrible choice. It just happened to be (one of) the best back in 1998 when this was decided. Sonic fan game engines didn't even exist back then.

SRB2 is definitely original but I wouldn't say it's completely the best. Although it's much better then most fan games now, most fan games are 2D homages to Sonic 1 - Sonic 3 & Knuckles and they all start getting old after a while, but SRB2 is definitely one of the most best at platforming, such as the Blitz Sonic engines. I'd go into detail but I believe that's "advertising".

I don't think it would be advertising if you mentioned fangames that you think are better and tell us why. As long as its not your own game, of course.

 

[Ultimate]

Well SRB2 was started around 13 years ago I think...so when it was originally being made, the Doom engine was relatively new. And they just never switched engines, probably because they had already come so far.

EDIT: Spiritcrusher beat me to it :P

 

[Streakster Typhoon]

Well then, since you're right with it being old and DOOM was new during that time let me re-word it. Since it's been in development for more then 10 years I think it'd be better to change it because DOOM physics + Sonic = Fail. And since Ultimate beat me to it already, yes now they've gotten so far it'd be a HUGE waste to just toss it aside.
But the reason of Blitz Sonic being a little superior in my taste is because it's built like an actual Sonic game, the original engine of Blitz Sonic present original engine is Bitz Sonic V21 I believe. But you see what it can be turned into? Spectacular amounts of creations can be altered from that one little thing. Such as a new Blitz Sonic engine, Sonic Dimensions, it's built to have classic Genesis physics with the taste of a modern feeling. 2 in 1, awesome sauce. :D

 

[MascaraSnake]

So was there even any actual game made with Blitz Sonic?

Also, the physics in SRB2 aren't Doom physics anymore. They were changed heavily for this game.

 

[Streakster Typhoon]

Blitz Sonic is newer then SRB2 let's keep that in mind for now. But so far it's possible to do so, but it'd take hours and or months of work...like SRB2.
But it's engine isn't supporting a full game unless you make a level list in the "Levels" folder and make a menu for the levels. Which is one of the places where SRB2 is superior to Blitz Sonic.

 

[Charybdizs]

An interesting observation on something that came up in this topic:

Super Mario 64 played in a completely different style than Super Mario World or any of it's predecessors did. When the move to 3D was made, things had to be changed, simply because the game mechanic wouldn't translate well in the new dimension.
The same goes for Sonic in many ways. The way the 2D games worked was okay for in 2D, but taking that and putting it in 3D doesn't work so well. Even the more liked 3D Sonic games, like Adventure or Heroes, didn't really use the same play style as the originals, for good reasons. 2D level design in a 3D environment just feels restrictive.

Basically, one shouldn't complain about a 3D game being too different from a 2D game. The addition of one dimension adds a lot of complications, and a necessity to approach level design from a completely different angle.

 

[Mystic]

That's the whole point. In order to actually make a game out of any fangaming engine properly, you have to be willing to accept that your engine is going to be out of date by the time you got done with it. If you took BlitzSonic or any other modern Sonic engine and sat down to make a full, proper game with it, you can be absolutely assured that your engine is going to be massively out of date by the time you get all the levels and art done.

While SRB2's engine most definitely has limitations and drawbacks, I personally consider that vastly outweighed by the fact that we actually have more than just a single zone's worth of demo content lying around for you to play. I haven't spent more than 3 minutes on BlitzSonic, yet I'm still here after almost a decade on the project because there is more to SRB2 than a single test room.

 

[MascaraSnake]

Blitz Sonic is newer then SRB2 let's keep that in mind for now. But so far it's possible to do so, but it'd take hours and or months of work...like SRB2.
But it's engine isn't supporting a full game unless you make a level list in the "Levels" folder and make a menu for the levels. Which is one of the places where SRB2 is superior to Blitz Sonic.

Well, that's not the point. The point is was there any game ever made for it? Because if not, SRB2 is obviously superior because it's an actual game that you can actually play, even if BlitzSonic is without a doubt the better engine.

 

[daiches99]

I honestly don't understand why so many people dislike the DOOM engine...

Streakster,

Sure it's outdated and there aren't any slopes which is understandable. But hasn't the current outcome of the game displayed wonderful results?
While the characters, rings and springs are the same, the enemies and textures and music and the environments are all rather original as well. The gameplay feels fairy different to a 'Standard Sonic Game' and isn't fully about running to the end as fast as possible, there's a nice combination of platforming and running throughout all the stages without getting to old too quickly.

There is also a reasonable level of speed which allows the levels to have depth as well which means you aren't running through everything in seconds. There's no 'Boost to Win' method and the speed allows you to take in the surroundings and you might just find 'that breakable wall' which could lead to a secret path, life monitor or emblem. Were the 'Classic Sonic Games' just about running at top speed? No, while you could potentially run the entirety of he time, there were some secret monitors or paths hidden around levels which took a while to find. I also can't help but feel that most Sonic fangames focus too heavily on speed and less on platforming, or vice versa.

As Charybdizs mentioned earlier, the gameplay follows the 3D transition where you can't simply run in a straight line the whole time, Metroid is a Prime example (excuse the pun) of 2D to 3D gameplay with the Metroid Prime Trilogy taking advantage of the 3D to expand the players visual and physical environment. The Legend of Zelda also had a rather large change to gameplay when converting between dimensions. The sudden gameplay changes cannot be avoided.

While the game may not have been finished in two years, consideration has to be taken to the fact that there isn't an entire fully professional team developing the game at working hours everyday. SpiritCrusher also made a good note that the Blitz engine has no gameplay. Look as well at the wads that have been made for the game, there are a variety of game types to fit Multiplayer and there are a nice range of Single Player levels as Packs or as One-offs. Blitz Sonic constantly seems like horrible platforming or constant slopes that break the gameplay and momentum. Again, this is all personal thoughts of course.

While this is all just a biased rant due to the fact that I think SRB2 executed better gameplay than some other Sonic games, I don't want you to take this as an attack towards your points as I'm just posting my personal opinion on SRB2.

Enjoy your stay at the forums!

 

[SteelT]

It would take ages to remake SRB2 on Blitz Sonic due to all the stuff the devs would have to do not to meantion a netplay, level and character system to be coded. As in Blitz Sonic it got to many limits to make a full Sonic fan game. DOOM was chosen at the time since there where no Sonic fan game engine. SRB2 can also be customized with level, characters or even EXE modifications.

 

[BotanicJet989]

Srb2 has changed. Chaos has been removed. Old CEZ is gone. But the DooM engine has been used since the start, excluding the 1st demo made by The Games Factory. Still the DooM legacy engine is pretty good and probably better that Blitzsonic, and need I remind you all that SSNTails chose the Doom engine so we shouldn't change that. And besides there IS a way to increase speed. Try and edit the source code to make the players increase speed if they roll down hill a la Sonic 1,2,3 and knuckles.