If you guys forgot, we did a SEGA News Bits video on the Sonic Forces day one patch that had a Sanic shirt and Super Sonic. The Sanic shirt was released on November 27th for free. Well, now SEGA has made the Super Sonic transformation DLC live, at least in Europe. The page says it comes out on the 22nd, so expect it on the US PlayStation Store tomorrow.
“Speed through the levels faster than Sonic… as Super Sonic! Get the SUPER SONIC DLC for SONIC FORCES now to transform into Super Sonic across 20+ Modern and Classic Sonic. Collect the right amount of rings and Super Sonic will spring into action, giving you the ability to sprint across stages at break-neck speeds.”
According to the product description, you can’t participate in rankings with the Super Sonic DLC. If this was the end of this news story, I would say that SEGA did a great job, but sadly it isn’t. According to the Nintendo eShop page for the DLC, Super Sonic will be $2 paid DLC after January 23rd. I usually don’t mind companies adding new things to games and charging, if its worth it. But here are my issues with this…
IF OPINIONS HURT YOU, STOP READING.
The first issue steams from the fact that Sonic Forces is the shortest 3D Sonic game in at least a decade, if not ever. The game can be completed in less than three hours, most of the stages are rather short and not really creatively designed. Its weird that SEGA is ready to do timed ‘free’ DLC right now, when it hasn’t announced plans for more patches to fix issues the game has. For example the weird lack of the drifting mechanic that was in other modern Sonic games, even though some of the later levels in Sonic Forces seem to be designed to be played with that missing mechanic. Most people will say that doing post patch fixes cost a company money but it seems that other companies have no issue doing it to their big franchises. For example Final Fantasy XV adding extra story or Nintendo’s extended support for both Splatoon 2 and Arms.
The reason a lot of these companies like Atlus and even SEGA (with other titles) do timed free DLC, is to get people to buy you’re product right when it comes out. This means more copies are sold at a higher price point and stores are more willing to stock on your software since there is demand. The issue is, when a game like 7th Dragon III Code: VFD did free timed DLC, the base game was already jammed pack with content. Not only that, the DLC they did add wasn’t a staple to the franchise…. Which leads me to my last point.
Super Sonic transformation was introduced way back in Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and has been in most main entry Sonic titles since then. It has been used as a secret that players would unlock, for free, by playing and collecting items within the game. It was a reward, not a product. It seems that SEGA is pretty desperate to move more Sonic Forces units out of store shelves and willing to make a quick buck from the fan base. I don’t mind paying for extra content in-game, but not something like Super Sonic, that has been free in Sonic the Hedgehog games since the early 90s. Hey, some will say they gave us Episode Shadow, so we should suck it up. That’s valid, if it doesn’t bother you then go right ahead and ignore my ramblings. I just feel that Sonic Forces was a step back for the 3D Sonic the Hedgehog games and pulling sleazy moves like this continues that backwards trend. But hey, Sonic Mania has playable Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Super Sonic and more…
But what do I know, I’m just some dude on the internet. Tell us what you think on SEGA making something like ‘Super Sonic’ timed free DLC and if its a big deal to you as fan!
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I agree that it is a terrible decision to make Super Sonic paid DLC. This would have been a bad move even if Forces was the best 3D Sonic game ever. The fact that they’re pulling this stunt with a game that is mediocre at best shows how out of touch SEGA is.
I absolutely agree. This is the dumbest purchase incentive Sega’s made since they were giving out extra lives as a pre-order bonus for Sonic Lost World. I really want Micheal Jordan to go over to Sonic Team and tell them “Stop it. Get some help.” because damn, dude, they need it.
If decisions like this one are coming from Iizuka, pardon me, but he really needs to step aside before it’s too late. “Clueless” would be a polite way to define Sonic Team now.
And that’s another reason Mania is light years better than Forces
If you’re complaining about a $2 dlc that doesn’t apply to competitive play on a mobile game then you’re probably looking for something to be cranky about.
Hang on, you guys are talking about the actual console game. Again though, it’s $2 of pocket change for a non competitive dlc.
To each their own, but if we fans start forgiving messes like this, we shouldn’t complain if Sonic games are absolutely garbage in 5-10 years. It’s not about being cranky. Of course there are more important things in life. But this is a big mistake from Sega (one more big mistake, in fact) and we can only tell Sega what we think about it.
This is what I’m talking about though. You’re not talking about the game’s content, polish, and overall fun factor. You’re putting your foot down on a $2 power up that’s even free for the moment. Hate on good marketing all you want, it’s a solid tactic to help the team make more games with better polish in the future. This is a far cry from a micro-transaction system or anything else telling of a poorly conceived game. It’s a marketing tactic and one that’s harmless to the player base. Let’s focus instead on the actual game content.
That’s your opinion and I respect it. However, I don’t think it’s an universal truth (and my opinion isn’t, as well). Many people, like me, think this is a wrong move for a game that needs a lot of right moves because the game itself is a disappointment.
We can argue as much as you want, but we’ll always reach to the same point: this is not important for you, but it’s important to people like me. Not important like “I can’t sleep because Sega did this”, obviously, but more like “It’s a shame that Sega is so clueless about what needs a Sonic game to sell: BEING GREAT”.
But hey, if Sega keeps doing this and in 20 years Sonic is forgotten as we “fear”, I won’t be crying on the streets. As I said, there are many more important things in life. But, should I shut up my opinion about this DLC because I should be grateful that I have a home and a job?
In other words: someone saying “This looks very wrong to me” isn’t necessarily someone that’s angry and looking for some fight 🙂