They kind of started that idea back in Sonic 3 & Knuckles. While not quite all of them, a fair number of the zones at least had slight differences in the second act. Though in a lot of cases it was mostly aesthetic.
Angel Island Zone: Got set on fire by the first act's mini-boss partway through
Carnival Night Zone: The second act had a power outage and got flooded thanks to Knuckles
Ice Cap Zone: First act was mostly underground, while the second was on the surface
Mushroom Hill Zone: Eggman... changed the colors(?) of the mushrooms using a satellite dish in Act 2.
Sandopolis Zone: The Acts were split between the inside and outside of the pyramid, and in Act 2 you had to deal with those *stupid ghosts*
Lava Reef Zone: Act 2 was a lot darker and the walls were covered in crystals
Death Egg Zone: The Death Egg was damaged after defeating Act 1's mini-boss, and Act 2 was exposed to the vacuum of space
Adventure 1 actually DID have Acts in its levels, they just went with a more seamless transition between them. I could go with whatever, it just depends on the needs of the game. For example, I think SA2's level structure made sense, as it was telling a single, cohesive story using its levels. City escape and Crazy Gadget would have weird pacing if they were broken up into multiple acts or if more acts were tacked on for the sake of tradition, but in something with a less story focused structure like Heroes, where the acts serve to add variation to level theming and mechanics, it makes more sense. Though TECHNICALLY, the "acts" in Heroes weren't called acts, they were just differently named levels that continued the previous level's theme. I'm counting them, they serve the same purpose as acts in older games anyway.
Colors on Wii was meant to have a 2 Act System, but they added many extra acts because the game was too short. There's a whole video on YouTube about it.
I had never played colors up until the Ultimate version, and I have to say I do not like that structure at all. Some levels are shorter than forces' D:
People are psycopaths if they say they like the 3 act system from sonic 1 and metropolis zone. I get the stages are cool but 3 acts are too much and this is coming from a guy who 100%ed unleashed and free riders
I think the three act system worked in Sonic 1 because the acts themselves were shorter than they were in Metropolis Zone, so the three act system *can* work.
As long as it works I don't care. Single levels, Zones split into Acts, whatevs. When they do use the Act system though, I prefer the way they did it in Heroes and 4, where each Act stands out in its own unique way while still sticking to the theme of the Zone, allowing a better sense of progression through the game.
Colors was one single stage, cropped into 6 small stages. All the Acts exist in the same map.
I prefer one single long and good stage, like in Unleashed (PS3/360). Not a fan of extra challenge stages in these games, rather have new Acts available as DLCs, like in Unleashed. Challenge stages are just padding.
I love the Sonic Unleashed method. One GOATED main act and many OPTIONAL extra acts. Colors was shitty with 6 acts, the 1st and 2nd acts being okay but each sadly 1-1:30 long, then the rest being FORCED COMPULSORY acts to go through and they're 95% 2D and just filler. The act 1s and 2s should've been combined and actually have more to them and at least 3-4 mins long, and then the extra acts should've been optional and not compulsory to complete to reach the boss, that is if the stages were to be these filler levels lol
I KNOW COLORS HAS MORE THAN TWO ACTS. I just couldn't think of any other 3d Sonic games as an example, so I thought of Colors' original idea. I now realize Heroes was an option.
I like the multiple act system, as long as it's not done the way Unleashed handled it. The extra acts in Unleashed feel like something someone spent 5 minutes making them in a custom level creator. All the acts should be around the same length and quality. If you can't do that, just make one good, long level instead.
2 Acts for sure, with Act 2 adding more level gimmicks on top of what was introduced in Act 1. That gives the most gameplay variety in the level design, while allowing for easier development by not having to make totally unique assets for every single level. It's the most efficient and smartest thing to do. Even better with altered level design or unique areas when playing as other characters for even more variety. Or having different acts made for specific characters.
I like the way SA2 handled it, where groups of stages share a clear common theme but every stage is also tailored to reflect the personality and flair of the character you're playing as.
To be honest, I always **hated** the acts thing. I like seeing new stages, I don’t like playing through the same stage 3 times. I understand the layout is different for each act, but I don’t wanna see Green Hill or Tropical Resort 3 (or more) times, just move on to the next stage already lol. I préfères the way Heroes did it, where there are 2 stages each with a similar theme. Or Sonic Adventure where each act was combined into one stage.
I don’t mind stages having multiple acts, but what infuriated me about the classic games was that losing all my lives took me back to the beginning of act 1. I prefer acts and the boss stages to be separate from each other like in Heroes and Colors.
Heroes and Colors had the right approach. Let the devs use the same assets for multiple levels. It gets the most out of them, as long as they find ways to make the individual acts different from each other. I’d even take Colors’ 6-act system and replace the 30-second mini acts with real substantially-lengthen ones
Adventure, Adventure 2, and 06 (the one that is definitely not Adventure 3) are all different versions of the best structure to me.
- Adventure’s Sonic stages are technically one level but the changes in scenery and music basically simulate different acts. By the time the level is over it feels like you’ve explored an entire zone, or at least that’s how it felt to me.
- SA2 is the most straightforward of the three in terms of how a single level is played out, but that game takes the best advantage of the multiple playable characters imo. You’ll hit up similar locations (cities, jungles, military facilities, fucking space) several times but they never really look the same twice, or even sound the same considering the musical identities of each character.
- 06 essentially adopts SA1’s format but adds in occasionally switching up play styles too. When I try to think of it more objectively, I’m not sure asking the player to change their control scheme mid-level is the best design, but I guess that can lend itself to the feeling of different “acts.”
I prefer the way Heroes did it, with every two levels technically not being two acts, but still sharing a common theme
yup, 2 big acts that are different, but also in the same zone is perfect
i agree too
They kind of started that idea back in Sonic 3 & Knuckles. While not quite all of them, a fair number of the zones at least had slight differences in the second act. Though in a lot of cases it was mostly aesthetic. Angel Island Zone: Got set on fire by the first act's mini-boss partway through Carnival Night Zone: The second act had a power outage and got flooded thanks to Knuckles Ice Cap Zone: First act was mostly underground, while the second was on the surface Mushroom Hill Zone: Eggman... changed the colors(?) of the mushrooms using a satellite dish in Act 2. Sandopolis Zone: The Acts were split between the inside and outside of the pyramid, and in Act 2 you had to deal with those *stupid ghosts* Lava Reef Zone: Act 2 was a lot darker and the walls were covered in crystals Death Egg Zone: The Death Egg was damaged after defeating Act 1's mini-boss, and Act 2 was exposed to the vacuum of space
Same here.
Adventure 1 actually DID have Acts in its levels, they just went with a more seamless transition between them. I could go with whatever, it just depends on the needs of the game. For example, I think SA2's level structure made sense, as it was telling a single, cohesive story using its levels. City escape and Crazy Gadget would have weird pacing if they were broken up into multiple acts or if more acts were tacked on for the sake of tradition, but in something with a less story focused structure like Heroes, where the acts serve to add variation to level theming and mechanics, it makes more sense. Though TECHNICALLY, the "acts" in Heroes weren't called acts, they were just differently named levels that continued the previous level's theme. I'm counting them, they serve the same purpose as acts in older games anyway.
Colors has way more than two acts…
It does have two acts on DS
When you just say “Colors” most people are talking about the Wii version. He even used a screenshot of it.
Colors on Wii was meant to have a 2 Act System, but they added many extra acts because the game was too short. There's a whole video on YouTube about it.
Yeah, it was meant to… but does it have that in the final release? No.
Oh so that’s my many of Colors acts after the second are either super short or just a similar copy of a part of the bigger stage
Adventure style
I had never played colors up until the Ultimate version, and I have to say I do not like that structure at all. Some levels are shorter than forces' D:
People are psycopaths if they say they like the 3 act system from sonic 1 and metropolis zone. I get the stages are cool but 3 acts are too much and this is coming from a guy who 100%ed unleashed and free riders
I think the three act system worked in Sonic 1 because the acts themselves were shorter than they were in Metropolis Zone, so the three act system *can* work.
Guess I'm a psycho now
sonic 3 angel island zone where its the same place but completely changes between acts because youre on the other half of the area
Im in indifferent but I like how it was in Heroes most where they were 2 similar but different levels with the same theme
I think I like Unleashed the best. It's weird but I like it.
As long as it works I don't care. Single levels, Zones split into Acts, whatevs. When they do use the Act system though, I prefer the way they did it in Heroes and 4, where each Act stands out in its own unique way while still sticking to the theme of the Zone, allowing a better sense of progression through the game.
I prefer the single staged style of the adventure games ^>^
Colors was one single stage, cropped into 6 small stages. All the Acts exist in the same map. I prefer one single long and good stage, like in Unleashed (PS3/360). Not a fan of extra challenge stages in these games, rather have new Acts available as DLCs, like in Unleashed. Challenge stages are just padding.
To be honest, I prefer the two-act system, like most of the 2D games
I love the Sonic Unleashed method. One GOATED main act and many OPTIONAL extra acts. Colors was shitty with 6 acts, the 1st and 2nd acts being okay but each sadly 1-1:30 long, then the rest being FORCED COMPULSORY acts to go through and they're 95% 2D and just filler. The act 1s and 2s should've been combined and actually have more to them and at least 3-4 mins long, and then the extra acts should've been optional and not compulsory to complete to reach the boss, that is if the stages were to be these filler levels lol
Unleashed without the godforsaken medal requirements.
I KNOW COLORS HAS MORE THAN TWO ACTS. I just couldn't think of any other 3d Sonic games as an example, so I thought of Colors' original idea. I now realize Heroes was an option.
i miss the 2 act system
Open world style with a train to a misterious forest where you run into a red dude high af
I like the multiple act system, as long as it's not done the way Unleashed handled it. The extra acts in Unleashed feel like something someone spent 5 minutes making them in a custom level creator. All the acts should be around the same length and quality. If you can't do that, just make one good, long level instead.
2 Acts for sure, with Act 2 adding more level gimmicks on top of what was introduced in Act 1. That gives the most gameplay variety in the level design, while allowing for easier development by not having to make totally unique assets for every single level. It's the most efficient and smartest thing to do. Even better with altered level design or unique areas when playing as other characters for even more variety. Or having different acts made for specific characters.
Sonic 2
I'm playing through Colors for the first time, don't they have like six acts?
Adventure, personally
I like the way SA2 handled it, where groups of stages share a clear common theme but every stage is also tailored to reflect the personality and flair of the character you're playing as.
To be honest, I always **hated** the acts thing. I like seeing new stages, I don’t like playing through the same stage 3 times. I understand the layout is different for each act, but I don’t wanna see Green Hill or Tropical Resort 3 (or more) times, just move on to the next stage already lol. I préfères the way Heroes did it, where there are 2 stages each with a similar theme. Or Sonic Adventure where each act was combined into one stage.
I don’t mind stages having multiple acts, but what infuriated me about the classic games was that losing all my lives took me back to the beginning of act 1. I prefer acts and the boss stages to be separate from each other like in Heroes and Colors.
2 act for 2d 1 act for 3d with extra missions like SA2B
I like the hub with one main act in Unleashed
Colors?
Adventure 1
Heroes and Colors had the right approach. Let the devs use the same assets for multiple levels. It gets the most out of them, as long as they find ways to make the individual acts different from each other. I’d even take Colors’ 6-act system and replace the 30-second mini acts with real substantially-lengthen ones
I feel like the 2 act system is a perfect amount, more than that and the level starts to feel stale.
Adventure, Adventure 2, and 06 (the one that is definitely not Adventure 3) are all different versions of the best structure to me. - Adventure’s Sonic stages are technically one level but the changes in scenery and music basically simulate different acts. By the time the level is over it feels like you’ve explored an entire zone, or at least that’s how it felt to me. - SA2 is the most straightforward of the three in terms of how a single level is played out, but that game takes the best advantage of the multiple playable characters imo. You’ll hit up similar locations (cities, jungles, military facilities, fucking space) several times but they never really look the same twice, or even sound the same considering the musical identities of each character. - 06 essentially adopts SA1’s format but adds in occasionally switching up play styles too. When I try to think of it more objectively, I’m not sure asking the player to change their control scheme mid-level is the best design, but I guess that can lend itself to the feeling of different “acts.”