Has Sega Taken its First Serious Stance Against SFGs?
We warned all the positive mainstream exposure of Sonic Fan Remix could eventually backfire, and with the sudden removal of the principal download link to the just released Sonic Fan Remix demo from RapidShare, it appears that has happened.
Fans trying to download the game from RapidShare late Thursday morning were met with notice the RAR file had been marked as “illegal.” They were then forwarded to a web page with the following notices:
This file is copyrighted and may not be distributed without permission of the copyright holder. We will direct you to rapidtainment.com where you can check out entertainment products.
The file has been removed from the server due of infringement of the copyright-laws.
For any file to be removed on RapidShare, one must send an E-Mail to an abuse specific address owned by the company, so a real effort had to be made for this action to occur.
Mirror sites with the download have been made available on MegaUpload and 2Shared, among other places. Those have not yet been removed, as of the time of this article’s publication, though a download limit on 2Shared has been reached. Even the SFG’s creator, pelikan13, appears nonchalant about it, merely offering the 2Shared download link as an alternate to members of Sonic Retro (though interestingly enough, not at the official website.) Also noteworthy: Discussion of the Sonic Fan Remix continues unabated on Sega’s own forums, though it now includes plenty of criticism based on the assumption that Sega’s legal department is behind the purge.
There is no evidence right now to support that theory. That said, we found a tweet from Sega Europe community manager Kevin Eva, via his Sonic Wrecks Twitter feed, responding to Sonic Retro’s formal announcement of the demo release in a manner alluding to trouble:
Just saying, the fan mix site could probably do with disclaimer at the bottom – friendly advice you might want to pass on!
Again, it’s important to stress there is no confirmation Sega is behind the copyright claim, at least not yet. We have E-Mails going out right now both to Sega community managers and to Sega’s legal department for clarification. If we hear anything back, we’ll be sure to pass it along here. This is a developing story, and one that absolutely has an impact on the future of Sonic fan gaming. Check with TSSZ News as we continue to cover further developments.
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“I didn’t say it was BETTER or that those things alone made the game GOOD, I just said they made SFR look and feel much more unique and original. Don’t put words into my mouth”
Well, excuse me. But still, taking Super Mario Bros. 1 and adding sprinkles that you will RARELY EVER SEE in-game does not make a game feel more unique.
Something like a new move or two would make this more original and NOT added sprinkles.
“Episode 1 may not have been MEANT to be original, but that doesn’t mean that the decision to make a “nostalgic retro episode” in the first place wasn’t a stupid and completely unnecessary idea from the start.”
And yet Megaman 9 and 10 are popular among the fans and reviewers. Hmm…
“SFR features several concepts and ideas that are blatantly more brilliant than anything I’ve ever seen Sega produce”
The flying Eggman mecha in the BG doesn’t really do much for me. Sure it’s part of the story, but you’d think Eggman would already have his ULTIMATE WEAPON(Up to this point) already on his space station ready to kick Sonic’s butt with, right? Anyways, the ideas in this are ideas Sonic Team has already experimented with. Just you don’t see it because you’re actually playing the game to play the game. Not to stare at graphics, sprinkles and useless garbage in the foreground and background of the levels.
Just played Sonic Fan Remix. I have to say, I loved it. As far as its comparison to Sonic 4, I’ll say it’s about the same in terms of quality.
SFR Pros: Sonic’s model looks a lot more classic and true to the original than the model in Sonic 4, which for me is a plus. Animations are pretty crisp, and it plays exactly like the original games. The graphics are astonishingly beautiful, the feel I get from the setting and atmosphere is fresh and new, but also nostalgic at the same time. This is the true mystical and majestic look and feel of a Sonic game, even if the mood is a little dark. Also, the level effects such as scenes in the background, the rain, and the badnik explosions are picture perfect. Sonic Team/Sega/Dimps could really learn a thing or two with this.
SFR Cons: I played this using a controller, and it seems to me the controls (or it’s controller support) could use a little tweaking. When using my joystick, Sonic sometimes stopped and looked up or down when I was trying to move forward. The physics still don’t seem to be perfect either. Sonic still needs some more momentum, especially when going through loops, and when coming off springs. The level design also seemed a little too easy, even in comparison to the original Sonic 2 Emerald Hill Zone. They need to make it a little more complex and challenging. One thing I was actually hoping for after playing Sonic 4 is a homing attack, since it actually worked out pretty well in that game. Also, the choices of music are a little questionable. I don’t prefer this being a remake of an old game, and from what I am seeing, these people are clearly capable of putting together something completely original instead (perhaps even what some of us hardcore purist fans would consider a “true” Sonic 4). However, if this is going to be a remake of an old game, I’d prefer remixes of Emerald Hill across all acts, or new tunes altogether. A Hill Top remix for act 2 seemed far too out of place. Other than that, it would have been nice to see some ring, shield, speed boost, and invincibility monitors in the game, but I’m sure those will make it into the final build. On a side note, I also think the motobug badnik could have looked a little more traditional. It really didn’t appear to be very Sonic-like in terms of its looks.
Overall, I’d say this is the best Sonic fan game I’ve ever played, and I can’t wait for the final build of this. Amazing work.
@Objection
Again, you seem to have missed the point. MM9 and 10 are retro games with entirely new content, not “new” games with retro content. I’m not saying making Sonic 4 the retro-styled game it was meant to be was a bad idea, my point was that filling up Episode 1 with rehashed material was an unnecessarily lame idea, regardless of whether that was the “point”.
As far as the “sprinkles” and visual effects go, that’s just one aspect of the entire project. To cite a Mega Man game, as you did: MM Powered Up is just an updated version of the original game and IT TOO has been well-received. It may be just an enhanced remake, but it has its own unique style and feel.
“You’d think Eggman would already have his ULTIMATE WEAPON(Up to this point) already on his space station ready to kick Sonic’s butt with, right?”
Actually, I’d think Eggman would be USING the damn thing to cause havoc and set up Roboland (or whatever it says in the background by the end of Act 3), not just letting it sit in the Death Egg docking bay WAITING for Sonic to come and fight it. I like that the storyline of the game is actually being presented by the level design. I think that’s not only creative, but an example of great storytelling.
To me, a game is a whole and complete experience. Would we really love the original Sonic trilogy if they all featured the same bland generic background of, say, the Sonic Simulator? I don’t think so. Presentation and story are both important aspects of a game. Granted, gameplay will always come first (and this is where the arguments about physics come in), but that doesn’t mean you should just write off every other aspect of a game as “useless graphics and sprinkles”.
“And yet Megaman 9 and 10 are popular among the fans and reviewers. Hmm…”
And yet, they featured new robot masters new stage layouts new weapons and new playable characters. Hmm…
Ah, shit, scratch NEW playable characters, sorry.
Or, even better the whole comment, ChaoticFox said enough.
@OBJECTION: “Lol… For one, Sonic Team could EASILY blow the holy FUCK out of this fangame if they wanted to. ”
They’re doing a great job of that so far.
@ChaoticFox
You know what…we may disagree on alot of things (concerning Sonic 4, and SFR) but I do respect the fact that you’re able to stand your ground, and are able to back up your statements with careful word usage. Instead of just mindlessly hating or praising a game.
I (being an old-schooler) like Sonic 4. It has it’s flaws and strengths and though I think it is fun, it isn’t perfect. Yes Sega is a huge company and does have years and years of experience in making games, but the only people working on the game that worked on the originals are Takashi Iizuka and Jun Senoue, and they still came in on Sonic 3. So I think for everyone else it’s kind of a learning experience in recreating the classics from the ground up.
I think the reason I’m not as disappointed with Sonic 4 as some people are is because I didn’t psych myself up into thinking it would be as good or better than the classics…not episode 1 at least. I knew there would be some issues and I would at least give it a shot. And of course as I had predicted, when I played it it had flaws and didn’t play exactly to the classics, but I didn’t expect to have as much fun with it as I do the classics (IMO).
Understand that I’m a purist and open-minded simultaneously, but I have a leniency towards episode 1. If they don’t improve on these issues by episode 2, and every episode is a rehash of the older titles, then me and a whole new storm of people will be highly highly disappointed and I will decline Sonic 4 as a sequel to the originals. I expect Sonic 4 to eventually be as good as the classics.
rapidshare is being an ass if it was from sega they would put the entire sonic fan games community down but they didn’t and why would particularly this game but not the dolphin emulator, jpcsp emulator and other stuff i download very often, anyway i am very pleased that dolphin wii emulator is getting very close a perfect emulation of the wii since the last release version its play sonic 4 very fast and don’t worry i am planning own the game on the ps3 very soon but what i am seeing this fan game i am willing to pay this creators tons of money too complete the whole remake of sonic 2 and 3 ( ^_^ )
lol Tristan it’s just Rapidshare. They mistook it for a game you buy. Idiots.
@ ChaoticFox
What about Sonic 4 is new? Um… every single freaking stage in the game minus the boss acts and they are even newer than this. What is new about this aside from the second act of Emerald Hill? Absolutely nothing.
@Jmack
I tried really hard NOT to compare the game to the classics, I really did. Upon first hearing about Needlemouse, I had my hopes raised up for something 16-bit – like many people did… but as I saw more and more of the game, I realized it would be an entirely different experience and I had to accept that. I approached the game with cautious optimism. I knew it would be different, but I hoped it would still be fun.
The problem wasn’t that it wasn’t “just like the classics”, but that it didn’t capture enough of what made me like those games in the first place. The physics issues were a HUGE deal to me, not because they were “different”, but because they weren’t FUN to play with or adjust to. To couple that with bland and boring level design, I just couldn’t find a whole lot of content to love.
But again, that’s just me.
I may no longer share your sense of optimism concerning future episodes, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t be pleased to be proved wrong.
ps. Thanks for the compliments. It means a lot.
@Edge.
Actually, upon careful inspection, all three acts of SFR are “new”. They have a lot of similarities with Emerald Hill and MOST of the layout is the same, but they’re actually not direct copies. So… there’s that.
Like I said before, I think making something old feel new again requires a lot more creativity and “originality” than making something new feel old. I accept everyone’s argument that the level layouts in Sonic 4 are new content… that’s a fair statement.
That being said, I still think SFR looks and FEELS a lot newer and more creative (if not wholly “original”) than Sonic 4 did. Maybe that’s just a matter of opinion, but I’d bet there are plenty who feel the same.
That happens when a random asshole user warns rapidshare about the file being “illegal”, it wasn’t rapidshare thinking it was. Simple solution is to name it something else, make the rar a different file size, and create mirror links.
Alright I have played SFR and here is my final comparison between it and Sonic 4.
Overall, Sonic 4 episode 1 wins. I simply had more fun with it. But here are the fine details.
SFR is to be praised, and I mean this with all my soul, for Sonic’s design alone. The hedgehog looks tremendously good in HD and with that classic modelling, and it’s a true wonder why Sega decided to go with that modern look, along with cel shading. It’s a no contest here, this fan-made Sonic looks so much better than Sega’s that it’s shameful.
SFR looks really nice, but playing it on “Fantastic” settings and full screen, I think I am allowed to judge and criticize something: the game DOES LOOK too “busy” many times. There’s so much stuff happening on the screen that sometimes I bumped at badniks simply because I did not see them. Arriving at the end of the stage with more than 50 rings was a big challenge for me, as well as a bit frustrating.
The physics are really good for a fan-made game. Not perfect, but really good. Sega should be ashamed here as well. Couple this with the much nicer Sonic model, and the hedgehog just “feels right”. It’s much better than the long-legged Sonic on molasses that Sega presented to us.
Sonic 4 wins, I think, in level layout and for having cleaner graphics. The first zone of Sonic 4 was more fun to play IMHO, even if it could have been SO much better. The homing attack, I feel, really did bring something new to the table, and something positive at that.
In closing, I think Sega could learn a lot of things from this fan-made game. First, look at Sonic and copy it exactly. Really, their Sonic is just perfect. Second, their ideas for background and dramatic effects (such as the rain and the big Robotnik robot) are amazing. I had a lot of fun racing the robot to the end of the level, and it should be a nice idea for future episodes.
Also, Sega should just fix their physics, because Sonic in this SFR just feels much nicer to control. He is lighter, faster, you don’t have to keep pushing forward when you jump, it’s exactly the Sonic we old fans remember and love.
Jesus Tristan,
You hype up the importance of NOT putting this game in Sega’s face too much, then you end this article with “We are sending emails to Sega’s Community Managers and their legal department.”
Just so you could pimp up your article?
Nice going, really. What on earth would such an email say that DOESN’T make it look any more serious to them? Hi just a friendly email to your legal department, just curious.
Yeah really nice move. Not attacking you if it wasn’t you who decided to do it.
– Dan
I see your point, Dan. That said, this site and me personally tend to not influence their policy and personal opinions. They’ve made that very clear in the past. If they did do something, it would have happened well before I requested comment.
-T
I really don’t think it was SEGA that ordered SFR removed from RapidShare. If it really was them, then you’d think they’d kill every single Sonic fan game on the site, you know? Plus, SEGA’s been EXTREMELY lenient with Sonic fan games, more so than any other video game company in existence (in my opinion), so why start cracking down now? I know that SFR has been getting the attention of some mainstream sites, but I don’t think that would be enough to push SEGA off the edge, nor would comparsion between it and Sonic 4. If it was because of that, they’d get pelikan 13 and his gang on board, in all honesty. Apparently, the fans remember the classics better than SEGA does.