Sonic Superstars: Discussing the new classic Sonic game with Takashi Iizuka and Naoto Ohshima Interview

It is an exciting time for Sonic fans. Last year, SEGA showed a lot of love for the famous blue hedgehog with the release of Sonic Frontiers, a brand new entry in the 3D Sonic series. Sonic Frontiers was an evolution of 3D Sonic gameplay and offered a new approach to high speed action with the implementation of the open zone design.

This year, Sonic Team is committed to offer a modernized approach to the traditional 2D or “classic” Sonic series. In collaboration with studio Arzest, the team at SEGA is working on Sonic Superstars, a modernized take on the 2D genre. Arzest was co-founded and is led by Naoto Ohshima, one of the original creators of Sonic the Hedgehog. After a lengthy period of working on other projects, Ohshima-san is returning to the character he created and wants to offer a distinctly modern approach to the classic Sonic formula. He is working closely together with Takashi Iizuka, the head of Sonic Team. During this year’s gamescom, we had the exciting opportunity to sit down with the two producers of Sonic Superstars and ask them some questions about their current project.

ntower.de: Iizuka-san, Ohshima-san, thank you very much for taking the time today! We want to talk about Sonic Superstars, the brand new entry in this long-running series. Last year, we had the evolution of 3D Sonic gameplay with the release of Sonic Frontiers. Now, Sonic Superstars is meant to be an evolution of the classic 2D Sonic gameplay. As a starting point, could you tell us what, in your opinion, is special about 2D Sonic games in comparison to their 3D counterparts?

Takashi Iizuka: The 3D Sonic games are putting a lot of effort in making the speed of Sonic feel thrilling and exhilarating. They have a distinct battle system and are really games for core gamers to enjoy and have a fun time. The 2D games are designed for anyone to just pickup and have a great time playing. Even if you have never played a game before, you can pickup the controller and experience the fun of a Sonic game without complicated inputs. That is great for kids, parents and people that are new to gaming in general. That is one of the unique elements of the classic series and the 2D game format.

We met Naoto Ohshima (left) and Takashi Iizuka (right) to discuss the upcoming release of Sonic Superstars

© ntower

ntower.de: As I said in the beginning, one major element of the game is that you wanted to present an evolution of the classic 2D gameplay. Ohshima-san, when you started to think about a new entry in the 2D Sonic series, which new elements did you want to bring into the game to give it a modern feel?

Naoto Ohshima: I really wanted to make a 2D classic game with no game over feature at all. Once we removed the game over features – like having no more continues and lives – we also had to remove the 1UP icon from the game that you also get when you collect 100 rings. Iizuka-san then brought up the problem that, when we remove this feature from the game, what do we put into the game to replace the 1UP rewards because they exist in so many places? My answer was to say yes, let us remove the 1UPs and replace the system with medals.

These medals are collectibles in the game, you can find them in bonus stages, for example. You will also get one when finding 100 rings. So in all zones and acts of the game, you can find these special medals. And then the next question was: What can you, as a player, do with the medals? And the real use of the medals is in the Battle Mode of the game. In this mode, you can build a metal fighter and customize it with special items. So instead of having the game over feature, we provide players with the possibility to customize their character in battle mode with the medals they can find throughout the game. So when they go online to experience the battle mode, they have a special reward for their achievement.

One of the exciting features of the battle mode is that we have completely new metal versions of the main characters. The fighters in battle mode are customizable Eggman created characters, so we realized that we also need a Metal Tails and a Metal Amy. These new designs were created by Kazuyuki Hoshino from the Sonic Team who invented the character of Metal Sonic. So, definitely, if you get the chance, take a look at the new character design created by Hoshino-san.

ntower.de: Ohshima-san, for you, it is a return to Sonic after a lengthy time of working on other IPs. Your studio Arzest has, among other projects, worked on the Yoshi IP with Nintendo and has developed the Blinx games in partnership with Microsoft. So you have a lot of experience outside of the Sonic world that you can now bring in when thinking about a new platforming game. How did these projects influence your ideas on platforming games?

Naoto Ohshima: I have learned a lot working on different forms of action games and especially working with Nintendo. I am very grateful for working with the Nintendo team and learning their specific way of designing games and content. But there is a fundamental difference between Nintendo games and Sonic games. Nintendo is very focused on a tight form of game design. They put obstacles in their games and the goal for the player is to clear these obstacles in order to continue forward. The core idea of Nintendo’s design philosophy is to lead the players through an experience, show them how to clear the obstacles and then show them where to go next afterwards. They are really good at offering this form of focused experience and teaching you as a player how to beat a game.

When you play a Sonic game, however, there is no single path that you can teach someone to clear and have them follow the path to get through. The fundamental game design of the classic Sonic games is that there are multiple ways to reach your goal. If you make a mistake and fall down, there is still another way to get through the level. So in a Sonic game, people do not follow the same guided path that they would follow in a Nintendo game. You can, for example, brute force your way through the level if you are willing to lose rings on the way. That is very different from the way that Nintendo would want players to experience their content.

In Sonic Superstars, with the addition of the new Emerald Powers, players have even more choice to complete the game in the way they want and get around the original design of a level. So there are all these layers in Sonic Superstars that are different from the way Nintendo designs content. Though I have learned a lot, this experience does not really apply to the design philosophy of Sonic.

Sonic Superstars combines classic gameplay with a new art direction

© SEGA

ntower.de: Iizuka-san, when we talk about classic Sonic games, one game that is very beloved by many fans is Sonic Mania, a title that you created together with the team of Christian Whitehead. In a recent interview with Game Informer, you said that, although Sonic Mania is a great game, one of its limitations is that, with its pixel art style and gameplay, it is targeting a specific core audience. One goal of Sonic Superstars is to reach a new audience for classic Sonic games. How did you choose the art style for the game and were there obstacles in using this specific graphics style for a 2D platformer?

Takashi Iizuka: I really enjoyed Sonic Mania, that was a great game. But one of the limitations of the game was that, though the pixel art was really great and nostalgic, it was mainly great and attractive for players who were used to this style of game and who have a nostalgic view on pixel art. For people like us who grew up with pixel games, this was very common and it made perfect sense to experience a game in this way.

But when we think down the road of an audience that is maybe ten or twenty years old, it is not going to work for them in the same way and they will not have the nostalgia that we have. That is why we said that we need to use a new visual format that people will know and understand now, and that is the 3D graphics that is similar to the style of other current games. So young kids now are going to be familiar with this style and ten or twenty years down the road they will say that this looks still great and that it feels familiar. This is why we chose this art style and this specific design of the world.

It was no particular problem or obstacle, but because we chose to build a 2D game with 3D graphics and animations, it probably would have been easier to make an actual 3D game (laughs). Customizing a 3D world and making it work as a 2D game requires a lot of craftsmanship. When you only see and play the game from the side, a lot of care has to be taken so that the game feels natural to control even when the world itself is built in 3D and is using 3D graphics. The team at Arzest spent a lot of time and work to make sure that their art and craftsmanship is coming across and the 3D world and art direction transforms into classic 2D Sonic gameplay.

ntower.de: We had the opportunity to play Sonic Superstars here at gamescom and playing the game and seeing the material, we felt reminded of Sonic Generations, another game that offers a distinctly modern take on classic Sonic gameplay. One element in Sonic Generations is the depth of the world – you can occasionally change perspectives and approach obstacles from a different angle. Was Sonic Generations an inspiration for you and the team and what did you change compared to this last attempt on a modernized 2D Sonic game?

Takashi Iizuka: For Sonic Generations the 3D world and 3D gameplay were created first. What we did in this game was to lock the camera so that we can show the players the sideview of this 3D adventure. So the game focuses on modern Sonic gameplay with a classic element on the sideview. When you look at the controls, you will see that it feels more like a modern Sonic game than having the feel of the classics.

The team really wanted to make sure that this classic Sonic gameplay remained intact and remained in Sonic Superstars so that people who love the classic feel can be assured that they will find that in this new entry. Moving forward, when we do more classic Sonic games, we want to keep this classic feel alive. That is the fundamental difference to the sideview in Sonic Generations.

One of the easiest ways to explain this is the following: When you play the classic courses in Sonic Generations, you are given a main route to follow. Maybe on the top and the bottom of the screen, there will be a few additional paths, but you mainly continue on the main route until the end of the level. That is a representation of the modern Sonic gameplay style. When you play Sonic Superstars or another of the classic games, there is not really a main route to follow. You will have all these branches and paths opening up and you will find numerous ways to complete a level. These massive maps are really a core element of the classic games and they do not exist in the same way in the modern Sonic formula.

The team chose to design completely new zones and levels for the players to explore

© SEGA

ntower.de: One major element of classic Sonic games – or Sonic games in general – is the constant return of classic zones and levels. Even in Sonic Frontiers, you had the Cyperspace Zones which were a throwback to places like Green Hill and Chemical Plant. For Sonic Superstars, the team is building completely new zones from scratch, although they take some inspirations from the classics. Why did you decide to have these new zones instead of modernized versions of the classic zones?

Naoto Ohshima: As creators, we always like to create something new. There is always this fun challenge of “What are we going to do next?”. So the team really wanted to take that to heart in Sonic Superstars and build something completely new. Working with Iizuka-san, they are making sure that it still feels familiar and like a Sonic game. There will be elements that you remember from past Sonic games that will be present here as well even though it will feel completely new. We wanted to keep the essence and “Sonicness” in the game even though it is a new place.

When we thought about the story together with Iizuka-san, we had the idea to go to a new island. We are here on the Northstar Islands and there is this mysterious thing happening. This has to be different from the other places that we already got to. So in addition to the creative drive to offer something new, there are also story reasons that influenced the decision. It is a brand new story with new characters and a brand new place. But of course, for people who have played Sonic games before, we wanted them to have a familiar experience. I personally also like to put a few secrets in my games and I hope players who know my work will find them (laughs).

ntower.de: One new element of the game is the four player multiplayer mode. Ohshima-san, this is a gameplay element that you really wanted to have in the game. If you play a Sonic game, the high speed action is really what stands out compared to other titles. Having four characters running around with that high speed at the same time seems to be very challenging to adopt when you want the players to have control of the action on the screen. Why did you want to have this specific mode in the game and how do you ensure that players can still control the game with so much going on at the same time?

Naoto Ohshima: Having a four player game mode was extremely challenging, but it was something that I wanted to do even at my time back at SEGA. At that time, it ended up to be too difficult to create and so it was never realized. When I started working together with Iizuka-san again, I brought up the idea of implementing this four player mode. I was not sure if we could do it, but it is something that I really wanted to try out this time. This is where it started, and so we kept challenging ourselves so that we can have this mode in the game.

We at Arzest built a lot of prototypes and started to test them with Iizuka-san and Sonic Team. Quite often, one of us said “No, this is not working!” (laughs). The process of iteration led to the current mode with four characters all running together.

Up to four players can experience Sonic Superstars together

© SEGA

Takashi Iizuka: When you look at all the other four player multiplayer games outside of the Sonic franchise, the characters are all together, having a fun time and they are scrolling through the world at their own pace. The goal of this kind of four player experience is to walk together and get to the goal in a much slower pace while having a fun time. That is where we are different. This is a high speed action platforming game, Sonic has always been that. And we need to keep that high speed Sonicness in the game. So, when you have the four characters together, it gets a little chaotic and there is a lot of speed shown at the screen.

I believe that a lot of the fun with this game mode will not come from the things actually happening on the screen but from the fun of talking with your friends and family as you play it together. Because we have these high speed characters, the conversations will most likely go in the direction of saying “Hey hey, slow down, what are you doing, I want to go in this direction!” (laughs). This is the experience we want to offer. People can actually feel like Sonic when running around with their friends.

ntower.de: Sonic Superstars is a return to classic Sonic for both of you. At the moment we are seeing renewed interest in this form of high quality 2D games. We had the release of Metroid Dread and Super Mario Bros. Wonder as well as Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown are also set to be released in the coming months. Why do you think do we see this renewed interest in the 2D gameplay style after many years of focus on 3D experiences?

Naoto Ohshima: I think this revival of 2D games is largely owed to the tightness of the design. When you press a button in a 2D game, you have complete control of what is going on on the screen. You have a very good control of the timing and the actions in a game. It is easy to understand the controls and feel the controls when playing this kind of game. That makes it compelling and fun to play.

According to the two producers, renewed interest in 2D gameplay is largely owed to the tight controls of this play style

© SEGA

When you make a game in 3D, you do not have this form of clean controls. You need tools like lock on assist to ensure that you are not off when performing an action. To make the game feel like it is intended to be, a lot of time and effort has to be put in to provide this form of assistance. I think that a lot of companies are recognizing this now and want to offer content that is appealing for fans of 2D games.

Takashi Iizuka: I fully agree with Ohshima-san here. The classic Sonic games were picked up and enjoyed by many people back in the day. When we made the move to the 3D format with Sonic Adventure, a lot of people also liked this new style. But I started realizing that this new format is not an evolution of the 2D gameplay. It is really a totally different genre. The fun that you have when you play a 3D game ist completely different from the fun that you have when you play a 2D game. We are lucky that we have both kinds of formats for Sonic. It exists as an amazing 2D game and an amazing 3D game. Moving forward, we want to think about the pillars of content that we can create and we want to provide players with both styles of gameplay by doing so. We want them to have fun when playing both 2D and 3D games.

ntower.de: Iizuka-san, Ohshima-san, thank you once again for your time!

You can find a German translation of this interview here.